2019 -Today’s Headline Reads: ” Alcoholics Anonymous Grows to more than 2 MILLION Members “.

The “Jack Alexander Article” of 1941

This date marks perhaps the most significant milestone in AA history. It was on this date, March 1, 1941 that the Saturday Evening Post included a feature article on Alcoholics Anonymous written by Jack Alexander.

AA has credited this article with putting Alcoholics Anonymous on the map, and AA climbed from 2,000 members to 8,000 in short order. Bill W. often said that AA became an overnight success.

The foreword to the Second Edition of Alcoholics Anonymous described the event in this way: “By March 1941 the membership had shot up to 2,000. Then Jack Alexander wrote a feature article in the Saturday Evening Post and placed such a compelling picture of A.A. before the general public that alcoholics in need of help really deluged us. By the close of 1941, A.A. numbered 8,000. Members. The mushrooming process was in full swing. A.A. had become a national institution.”

At the time of this article, nobody could imagine the success that A.A. would enjoy in the coming years. Today A.A. is present in 180 countries and has over two million members.

These number don’t reflect the influence and contributions that A.A. has had on the recovery movement in the past 80 years. The Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous are being used by various groups and organizations all over the world. It’s estimated that more than 20 million people worldwide participate in Twelve step recovery. Examples include: Narcotic Anonymous, Cocaine Anonymous, Pills Anonymous, Al-Anon Family Groups and a host of other successful programs.

Today we honor and remember the contribution of Jack Alexander who later became a Trustee of AA’s General Service Board. Thank you, Saturday Evening Post for seeing that Alcoholics can get well.